‘It gave me goosebumps’ – Pochettino impressed by USA’s youngsters

Syndicated reporting provided by Stats Perform and reviewed by the SoccerNews editorial team.

Mauricio Pochettino says the United States’ 4-1 victory over Peru “gave me goosebumps” after he fielded a lot of new faces at Inter.co Stadium.

The Argentine head coach, who signed a new four-year deal following the World Cup, handed out 11 senior team debuts on Saturday, with many of his new stars shining.

Justin Ellis and Julian Hall were both on the scoresheet during their first international cap, with Malik Tillman and Sebastian Berhalter also hitting the back of the net.

Mathis Albert also impressed off the bench, with one of his first involvements seeing him win the penalty from which Tillman scored.

Of the 11 debutants, eight of them were teenagers, and Pochettino was full of praise for how quickly they settled into the team.

“I am so proud of the performance,” Pochettino said.

“To see these young players come in, embrace the moment, and play with this kind of freedom and courage – it gave me goosebumps at times.

“It is about opportunity: giving the opportunity, and then they have to take it. What we saw is that the future is here, but soccer is about now. They showed they can compete right now.”

DOUBLED UP ON THE DEBUT GOALS pic.twitter.com/M9wxgnSxan

— U.S. Soccer Men’s National Team (@USMNT) September 27, 2026

All eyes were on 16-year-old Cavan Sullivan – who turns 17 on Monday – as he became the youngest player to earn a senior cap for the USA since Freddy Adu in 2006.

He was one of three debutants in the starting line-up, and Pochettino made it clear that he is determined to open the door to as many players as he can during the new World Cup cycle.

“Nobody can think their place belongs to them because of what they did in the past,” he added.

“It’s a fresh start, a new cycle. Everyone has the door open, but you must earn it every single day.”

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